Despite attempts to reduce the incidence of statelessness through national citizenship laws and through the implementation of the 1961 Convention and other international instruments, UNHCR estimates that there are millions of people around the world who have no nationality. The 1954 Convention defines who is a stateless person, promotes the acquisition of a legal identity for those persons, and ensures that stateless persons enjoy fundamental rights and freedoms without discrimination. “We can’t get regular jobs, we can’t move, we are like boats without ports. Access to education and health care are also problems. I couldn’t finish high school or go to college. I can only see a doctor in a private hospital, not in the government ones.” Who is a stateless person? The 1954 Convention defines a stateless person as one “who is not considered as a national by any State under the operation of its law” (Article 1). This is a purely legal definition. It does not allude to the rights enjoyed by nationals, the manner in which nationality is granted, or access to a nationality. Establishing whether an individual is considered as a national under the operation of its law requires a careful analysis of how a State applies its nationality laws in an individual’s case in practice and any review/appeal decisions that may have had an impact on the individual’s status. In trying to establish proof of statelessness, States should review the relevant nationality legislation of those States with which the individual has links (such as through birth, previous habitual residence, the State[s] of which a spouse or children are nationals, the State[s] of which the individual’s parents or grand‑parents are nationals), as well as examine information on how legislation is implemented in practice, including any information on the treatment of a person or population concerned. If necessary, the authority making the determination may consult with those States, and request evidence, as necessary. Individuals have a duty to provide as full and truthful an account of their position as possible and to submit all evidence reasonably available. UNHCR can facilitate consultations between States and can provide technical information on the relevant laws and their implementation in various States, as requested. Documents from a responsible State authority certifying that the individual concerned is not a national are usually a reliable form of evidence of statelessness. However, such evidence may not always be available. The relevant authorities of the country of origin or country of former habitual residence may refuse to issue certified 18 Abdullah, a stateless Bidoon living in the United Arab Emirates